Improvement in nozzles for the escape of steam or gases under pressure



UNITED STATES PATENT OEEioE.

' GEORGE BECK, OF LONDON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR T() PHILIP SYNG s JUSTICE, 0F SAME PLAGE.

IMPROVEMENT lN NOZZLES FOR THE ESCAPE 0F STEAM lOR GASES UNDER PRESSURE.

Specification forming partof Letters Patent No. 207,384, dated August 27, 1878; application filed December 10, 1877.

To all whom it may concern: Y

Be. it known that I, GEORGE BECK, of Devonshire street, Queens Square, London, in the county of Middlesex, in that part of the United `Kingdom called England, have invented new and useful Improvements in Nozzles for the Escape of Steam or Gases under Pressure, which improvements are fully set forth in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention consists in employing an apparatus through which steam and gases under pressure shall be forced to pass, in their efforts to escape into the open air or any other place provided for them, without such escape being accompanied by the usual puflin g and roaring noise; and where such escaping steam and gas are used. as a means of creating a draft in the smoke-fungiel .to induce quick-combustion this apparatus creates a more uniform and regular d raft than can be obtained by the introduction of theV exhaust-steam pipe with a cramped exit, as is usually employed, which, giving only intermittent puffs of great force, is apt to eject cinders and coals from the smokebox of the engines employing it, while by the use of this apparatus it will be found that cinders andl incandescentmatter are not liable to be jerked or shot out from the smoke-chamber or nre-box, thus forming also a most perfect sparkarrester for high-pressiire engines, such as locomotive, portable, and traction engines.

To produce the desirable results just described I provide a suitable chamber, of metal or other material, and preferably of cylindrical-form, varying in size according to the pressure of steam cr gas to be passed through it as well as the volume of the same. This chainber is provided with an inlet and an outlet Opening for the steam or gas. ear to and be- Pween these openings I secure metallic grat-v 1n gs or screens, of wire b or pierced plates, and the space between these gratings, screens, or

pierced plates I fill with small particles of glass, metal, stone, or any suitable material, and preferably of a spherical form. These inaterials may be either solid or pierced with small holes like beads, iand the chamber may be filled or part-ly filledby them, according to plates,

the result sought, for the greater the quantity and the smaller the size ofthe particles inthe chamber the less will be the noise of the escapiii g steam or gas; but the back pressure will be proportionately increased if extremes of quantity or minuteness of size be reached.

I am careful to provide sucient area in all my chambers to allow a free escape of the steam through the metallic gratings or pierced so that no vback pressure may arise, except what is due to the passage of the steam or gas through the contained material in the chamber, and this Ireduce to a minimum point by graduating the size of the material and the quantity used to the result which may be desired if it be an almost quiet discharge without regard toback pressure ofafew pounds, or if it be a reasonable quieting of the noise with a minimum amount of back pressure.

I have found chambers varying in their' internal diameter from three inches to eight inches, and from six to ten inches in length, to be good working sizes for discharging steam quietly from pipes varying from three-fourths to one and one-half inch, and having a pressure of ten to thirty pounds, respectively, and that spheres of glass or round beads varying from one-eighth inch to three-eighths give very good results, both as to quietng and back pressure, when properly proportioned to the boiler-pressure and volume to be discharged. I have also found that clusters of chambers, either connected or separate, may sometimes be more advantageously used in discharging large volumes of steam quickly than by one single and large chamber.

If it be deemed advisable to arrange one of my quiet-ing-chambers at the base. of a discharge steam-pipe, as in steam ships or vessels, by or through which the boiler-steam may be discharged quickly, I have found an annular chamber, as shown in Fig. 3, to be a convenient arrangement. This chamber may have horizontal ribs a projecting from its sides, as shown, to prevent the steam in its escape from creeping close to the wall of the chamber, and thus cause more noise .iii its escape than if forced to pass more entirely through the interstices of the contained particles. The chamber may also-v be divided by vertical Walls with sinilar ribs projecting horizontally from their s1 es.

.Figure '1 shows the usual form of my quieting-nozzle. A y v Fig. 2'shows a plan of Fig. 1 on` line W. V Fig. 3 shows an .annular chamber, A, with central valve B arranged to be discharged by hand iith lever C, pawl D, and rod E by ro.l tating rocker-shaft G, the central valve B to be loaded, so as only to lift when-the back pressure from the contained material in the annular chamber A is too great to permit the steam to pass. freely through the chamber,

" When the roarin g noise will disclose the fact.

The cross-'lines in Figs. 1 and 3' indicate the spacev for the contained material which isto be Aplacedr inthe chamber Fig. 4 is a plan of annular chamber A.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is#

` .Witnesses: l.

1v. The con struction of metallic or other suitable chambers or nozzles, as hereinbefore described, of' any suitable form, lled orpartiall y filled with loose particles of glass, stone, metal,

or other similar materials that are notreadily perishable bythe action of steam upon them,

to be used in quieting or suppressing the noisy roar of steam or gases when the same are forced -to pass through such chambers or nozzles of contained material, substantially as described.

. 2. 1n an exhaust-nozzle or quieting-chamber, the combination of the chamber AA, having the central valve B, the annular ribs a, and the gratings or screens, and illed with glass, metal, or other equivalent material, sub- .stantially as shown and described.

yGEORGE BECK.

GEO. DOWNING, GEO. FORBES. 

